Home > Wyoming > Osage vicinity > Clay Spur Bentonite Plant & Camp, Bunkhouses, Clay Spur Siding on Burlington Northern Railroad, Osage, Weston County, WY
B&W Photos
No images were found.
Data Pages
No images were found.
Photo Caption Pages
No images were found.
Item Title
Clay Spur Bentonite Plant & Camp, Bunkhouses, Clay Spur Siding on Burlington Northern Railroad, Osage, Weston County, WY
LocationClay Spur Siding on Burlington Northern Railroad,
Osage vicinity, WY
Find maps of Osage, WY
Created/Published
Documentation compiled after 1968.
Notes
Survey number HAER WY-23-E
Significance: The Clay Spur Bentonite Plant and Camp is associated with the early 20th century bentonite mining industry in Wyoming and the United States. The Clay Spur Bentonite District was the center of the pioneer Wyoming bentonite industry and remained the premier Wyoming producing district until reserves began to dwindle in the 1950s. The plant embodies the distinctive engineering technology of the bentonite industry. The camp also reflects early twentieth century company town architecture with simple buildings and floor plans that could be quickly and cheaply constructed and adapted to many different uses. The structure that served as a bunkhouse was composed of three segments (sometime after 1957 it was converted to an office/laboratory). It is composed of two one-story Butler buildings with gable roofs and an intervening flat-roofed wood frame segment covered with stucco. Each segment is 12 feet north-south by 18 feet east-west. The Butler buildings are constructed with ribbed steel walls, roofs, metal doors and window frames. They rest on a poured concrete foundation. The windows are four-light hinged units. The wood frame segment has a wooden door. The Butler buildings have round metal ventilators protruding from the roofs. The interior of the building consists of particle board wall paneling, linoleum-covered wood floors, and storage shelves. There are numerous bagged bentonite samples and company account books stored here. A portion of the roof has caved in, allowing the elements to damage the records. The two Butler building components were constructed between 1930 and 1934 and served as bunkhouses. The intervening space was filled in between 1940 and 1957. This building was still used for dwellings in 1957.
Subjects
BunkhousesPrefabricated Buildings
Collection
Historic American Engineering Record (Library of Congress)
Contents
Photograph caption(s):
1. VIEW SHOWING SOUTH SIDE AND EAST FRONT OF BUNKHOUSES
2. VIEW SHOWING REAR OF BUNKHOUSES
Back to Osage vicinity, Wyoming
Cart